Blind Date
by rowanred81
Summary: Blind date with Max and Chloe. Set in an AU world where Rachel never disappeared, is dating Kate, and Victoria is everybody's friend. Both girls intentionally set up with one another by Rachel Amber, Max is confronted with the one girl she hasn't seen in five years that she never forgot; unbeknownst to her, Chloe Price feels the same way. Hella Pricefield!
1. Chapter 1

**_Yes, I wrote something else. This took about an hour, and I needed to write something that wasn't so damn angsty. I wanted to do some fluff for shits and giggles, but while I thought this would just be a one-shot I found that it felt more like a two-parter. So. Enjoy! :)_**

 ** _Stay Hella, Cinnamon Rolls!_**

 ** _Part One_**

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this, Kate Marsh," Max Caulfield says as she looked at herself in the mirror, "I-I look ridiculous!"

"You look _so_ pretty, Max! You need to be more confident," Kate said as Rachel finished Max's makeup.

"She's right, Maxie. Besides, how you gonna argue with my girl?" Rachel said as she playfully wrapped her arm around Kate's shoulder, "You need to get out of this dorm room! A blind date is _perfect_. I even set you up with one of my friends, so don't get worked up!"

"And _who_ is this friend? Ugh, I've only been here a month and I'm being driven from my home," Max groaned, casually peeking at her reflection.

Max couldn't deny that Kate and Rachel's powers combined made for a formidable, prettier Max. Her hair still down with a single braid on the left side, Max's traditional jeans and t-shirt were replaced with a pink sundress with black leggings and her trademark sneakers. Makeup done to compliment and not exaggerate, Rachel had made a point of ensuring that the freckles remained. Sighing in resignation, Max meekly looked down at her feet before glancing up in time to see Rachel give Kate a kiss on the cheek.

 _Surprise Couple of the Century_ , Max couldn't help but think as she blushed _and_ giggled at the two lovebirds. Despite coming from a pretty conservative household, Kate was open to love in any shape or form. When Max had arrived at Blackwell last month, she had been taking photos outside when Rachel approached her about possibly taking some shots of her and her girlfriend. Blushing, Max had said that would be fine only to be floored by the sight of quiet Kate Marsh following Rachel into Max's room. Despite their different personalities and quirks, Kate and Rachel had come to represent a love that Max wanted for herself. _Maybe tonight will be it. Nahhhhh._

Grabbing her camera bag, Max double-checked its contents. _Camera? Check. Sketchbook? Check. Nintendo 3DS? Check. Phone? Ultra-Mega Check._ Satisfied, Max looked up and grimaced at the amused looks on her friends' faces. Putting a hand on her hip, Max was caught off-guard as she heard a camera go off from her open door and even more surprised when it went off as she spun around.

"Twirl that skirt, Caulfield!" Victoria Chase giggled as Kate and Rachel joined in on the laughter, "Wow. Who's the lucky girl, Kate?"

"I don't know," Kate said with a shrug as he walked over to look at the shots Victoria had taken, "The twirling of the skirt! Ohh! That should _totally_ be in Everyday Heroes, Victoria! But yeah, Rachel won't tell me. Despite our closeness, she's not sharing."

"And spoil the _absolute_ surprise?" Rachel said with a smirk as she started to gently nudge Max out the door, "Hell no!"

"Rachel!" Kate said with an irritated look.

"Oops. Sorry, babe," Rachel said as she poked at Kate's shoulder, "Still sweet on me?"

"Reluctantly," Kate said, her face becoming slightly flush before she was startled by Victoria taking a picture of her, "Vic, _stop_!"

Max chuckled as Victoria waltzed back into her room, waving her camera in the air mischievously as she closed her door. _Victoria Chase, criminal mastermind and junior paparazzo._ Feeling butterflies in her stomach, Max tried to dart back inside her room only for her door to be closed almost in her face by Rachel.

"No running away, Max. We tried to set you up last week, but you didn't even bat an eye when you said no. Give us a chance, give _your date_ a chance! You always hang out on campus, but you never go with us into Arcadia Bay! Live it up!" Rachel said, trying to encourage Max as she and Kate pulled the brunette by her arms down the hall. Getting some giggles and waves from Dana, Juliet, and Brooke, Max mouthed _Help_ to Alyssa only to get a grin and shaking of the head in return. _Agh, traitors! You're all Cylons!_

Max felt like a preschooler all over again as she sat on the bus, Kate on one side of her and Rachel on the other. They wouldn't tell Max where she was being shipped off to, they wouldn't tell her who her date was, and Rachel was holding off telling Max what to look for until she was at their destination. _Ugh, this sucks! I could be watching a movie or, Dog, even dating their first attempt at coupling me. Sure, Warren is a sweet guy, but there wasn't really any connection on our date. At least, not on my end. Maybe it's better that I don't try him again. Ugh, this sucks!_

Max didn't mind being the shy geek of her floor or her entire class. She'd been that way since she was a kid and it had never caused her too many problems. Of course, it had cost her the ability to make any lasting friendships. Leaving Arcadia Bay for Seattle five years ago with her parents, Max had left behind the only person she really felt ever understood her. _Chloe. Bet she's in Cali or somewhere cool right now, exploring the world like we always said we would. I wrote her_ lots _for the first few months I was gone, but I never got a reply back. Eventually, I just stopped altogether. Five years. How do you tell your friends that a single person has scared you out of an entire town_?

"Max?" Kate asked as the bus lurched to a stop, "Hey, Earth to Max. Uh, Rachel? I think she's spaced out again."

"Maxine Caulfield-" Rachel called out, Max's head involuntarily turning to lock eyes with Rachel.

" _Max_. Not Maxine," Max said as she was pulled out of her head, "Wait. What?" Rachel and Kate giggled at Max's stupefied expression as she looked out the window. "Isn't this the Chinese place we order from on Saturdays? I thought you told me it was a take-out only place!"

"Clever deception," Rachel insisted, winking, "This is where you get off, Max."

Pushed toward the front of the bus, Rachel and Kate blocked the way back to the seats as Max desperately looked at the driver. David Madsen glanced at her apologetically before grinning and gesturing with his chin toward the bus's open door. Sighing in defeat, Max slowly plodded out of the bus and onto the sidewalk before spinning around to look at Rachel and Kate through the closed doors.

"You didn't give me any clues to look for!" Max said as she put her palms up against the fiberglass windows of the bus's only entrance or exit, a pout on her lips, "Are you two cereal?"

"You'll know when you see," Rachel said through the closed door before she took Kate's offered hand and the two went to sit next to the door, Rachel blowing a kiss and Kate waving as the bus trailed off to its next stop.

"This is such bullshit," Max mumbled before she straightened herself up. Making sure one final time that everything was in place, Max slowly walked down the sidewalk and into Happy Dragon.

"Hi," Max said to the woman at the desk, trying to sound cheerful, "Reservation for two? It's under 'Rachel Amber'." _I'm going to troll the crap out of you for this, Rachel. I'll bombard your Facebook with pictures of angry cats…or something equal in irritatingly cuteness…_

Seeing the waitress grab a menu and motion to follow, Max held onto her arm with her other hand as she walked through the double doors leading into the dining area.

 _Rachel, so help me_ God _, if this is some lame-ass attempt at getting me out of you and Kate's hair I will hella stomp_ both _your asses_ , Chloe said as she slumped in her chair at Happy Dragon. Coming here a few nights ago with the two sickeningly cute lovebirds, Rachel had mentioned a new girl at Blackwell who she 'just knew' Chloe would fall head over heels for. _The only time my heels come over my head is when I get too drunk or high to stand, smart-ass. I can't believe I let her talk me into this, let alone dress the fuck up. Why did Dad have to play along with this schtick?_

Dressed in a nice jacket with a white shirt, Chloe had refused the pants in favor of a nice pair of black jeans and her favorite boots. Tempted to light up a joint right then and there, _Hella calm my goddamn nerves_ , Chloe gulped as she heard the waitress approaching form behind. Yanking her beanie off of her head, Chloe ran her fingers through her hair to try and look somewhat presentable when she saw the waitress offer the other chair to a girl in a pink sundress. _She's cute_. _Gotta give Rachel credit-_ , Chloe thought before both girls looked into each other's faces as they sat at the table.

"Holy shit," Max and Chloe said in unison as they gawked at one another. A moment of incredibly awkward silence creeped through, Chloe frowning slightly as Max bashfully looked away with her cheeks lightly flushed. Returning with jasmine tea, the waitress coughed when she realized the two girls hadn't even noticed her.

"Oh! Uh…I'll have the broccoli and mushroom entrée with white rice," Max sputtered, not even looking at the menu, "Also, an order of vegetable eggrolls." Finished with her order, Max glanced over at Chloe for a split-second before looking away again. _Wowsers. They set me up with Chloe. Of all people. I think this is my karma for hiding at Blackwell for so long…_

"Um…the same, I guess?" Chloe said with a shrug as she handed her menu to the waitress, the woman plastering a strained smile on her face as she walked off with their orders towards the kitchen. Chloe looked down at her lap, trying to come up with something to tell the girl she hadn't seen for five years. _Holy shit, Max grew up nice. Like,_ hella _nice. I thought the dress was cute, but when I saw it was Max everything got even better. Shit, what do I say? I never wrote her back, never called or anything! Wait. She didn't call or message me after those first few months, either. Yeah. No, she probably stopped because I never started._

"Ugh, everything is so fucked up!" Chloe blurted out before she clamped her hand onto her mouth, her eyes opening wide as she realized what had escaped her lips. _Shit shit shit_!

"Well, there is that," Max agreed, her tone unreadable to Chloe as the brunette looked the bluenette in the eye for a moment before taking a sip of her hot tea, "How about 'Hi, Max. I haven't seen you in years. How are you?' I think that would work."

"Uh…hi, Max. I haven't seen you-" Chloe started with a grimace as she saw Max's expression go from pleasant to irritation.

"You're actually copying what I said? So smooth, Chloe. Like sandpaper."

"I'm _trying_ ," Chloe snapped back, catching Max off-guard with her slightly pained tone, "I feel like I've just been trapped by my best friend into meeting with…with…"

"With the girl you never wrote back?"

"Shit. Yeah, the girl I never wrote back. But you never called or anything, Max! What was I supposed to do?" Chloe said, lowering her voice back down as her short outburst attracted unwanted attention.

"Write back, Chlo," Max said, feeling fatigued from the emotional shock of suddenly being on a date with the one girl she was hiding from, "Why didn't you write back?"

"I…I didn't know what to say…"

"That's a weak save, Chloe Price," Max said, her face as stern as her voice.

"…I know," Chloe uttered. _When the hell did little Max Caulfield grow a backbone?_ "I'm a stupid fucking dork, okay? I should have wrote, but it's just…you _kissed_ me, Max. You kissed me the day you left. How was I supposed to react?"

"Better than not getting back in touch with me! I mean, how could you?!" Max cried out in frustration before seeing the person tending bar eyeball her, "Sorry, sorry."

"This was a bad idea," Chloe said as she put a hand to her temple, "This is so hella bad."

"Tell me about it," Max said, crossing her arms before her face momentarily lighting up in alarm, "Don't kick my foot."

"You hit mine."

"No, _my foot_ has been perfectly still. _You_ have been swinging your legs like you're readying for a sprint since I sat down," Max said matter-of-factly.

The two girls' stomachs growled and they both offered a cease fire until they had eaten. Pulling out their phones, Chloe and Max frantically texted without realizing that the person they were messaging was the same person.

 **Chloe: Rachel wut the fuk**

 **Rachel: ?**

 **Chloe: Max Caulfield? U set me up with Max Caulfield?!**

 **Rachel: Ur the 1 who always talks about her, Chlo. It's obvious u like her and seeing as she is back in Arcadia Bay I thought it would do u good**

 **Kate: get off the phone, Rachel. U promised we'd have a night alone for movies. Ughhh, go away Chloe. Fly. Be free, blue-haired gayngel.**

 **Chloe: Hush, Lady Jesus**

 **Max: U always talk about me?**

 **Chloe: wat**

 **Rachel: I locked this chat in conference mode with your numbers. BTW, u have each other's numbers**

 **Rachel: bai :D**

 **Kate: goodnight XD**

 **Max: answer the question, Chloe**

Max looked up to see Chloe biting her lip, an anxious look in the blue-haired girl's eyes. _What the hell, Rachel?!_ Chloe thought before Max's staring at her became too much to bear.

"Yes, okay?! Yes, I haven't stopped thinking about you!" Chloe blurted out, giving the bartender the middle finger when he tried to hush her, "Dude, back off! I'm trying to talk to his lady! Yes, Max. I think about you all the time, okay?"

"They _why_ didn't you write me back?" Max asked, leaning over the table as she stood up from her chair, staring Chloe down.

"Because…because I _love_ you!" Chloe stammered, immediately pulling her beanie back on with enough force that her entire face was covered.

"W-What…?" Max asked with a stutter she hadn't felt herself give in years, "What d-did you just say to me?"

"…I love you, Max." Chloe's voice was barely above a whisper as she peeked with one eye while pulling at her beanie, "I was scared. Scared of how I felt and how you might feel. You kissed me the day you left and I was so scared because it changed how I felt about you right as you were leaving. Sure, it was great for you, but it was so painful for me! _What_?!" Chloe snapped as the waitress returned with two paper bags, catching both girls off-guard.

"You are making too much noise, and the manager would like you to leave," the waitress said, an irritated edge to her voice as she slapped the check down on the table with a little too much force. Max's jasmine tea spilling over as the cup tipped from how hard the waitress's hand hit the table, Max pushed back against the chair and narrowly missed the hot beverage's descent.

"I am totally not paying you anything, now," Max said as she shot out of her chair and snatched both bags from the waitress's hands, "Neither is she! C'mon, Chloe!"

"Max?" Chloe asked as she got up and looked at the fuming little brunette.

"I said _come on_!"

Following the pink fury, Chloe looked back to see the bartender come over to their table and chew the waitress out before following the trail of an angry Max Caulfield. Exiting the restaurant, Chloe saw Max looking up at the sky before a raindrop smacked her in the eye. Squinting the eye, Chloe looked over to see that Max's anger had quickly turned into a frown. _I told her I loved her after seeing her for the first time in five years, never having even_ tried _to get in touch with her. I totally suck._

"I have a ride," Chloe said, catching Max's attention as she led the brunette to her old beater of a truck, "I know it looks like shit, but-"

"It's fine, Chloe," Max said, her tone once more unreadable. Chloe couldn't help but notice that her voice seemed softer than earlier. Just nodding, Chloe opened the passenger door and helped Max in before closing it and running over to the driver's side as the sprinkles turned into a downpour.

"Fucking Oregon," Chloe muttered as she took her newly-drenched beanie off and ran her fingers through her blue hair, looking over to see Max watching her with a smirk, "Uh. Something on my face?"

"No. Just…wasn't there an anime character with blue hair that you swore to me you would someday look just like?" Max asked, an eyebrow raised questioningly.

"…No…"

"Liar."

"Nerd."

"Dork."

"Firecracker."

"Stoner."

Chloe did a double-take at Max's last word and looked over to see Max pull a thinly-rolled joint out of a small cigarette case.

"No fucking way," Chloe said in utter amazement, "You bake?"

"I'm an artsy-fartsy hipster. 'Course I bake, Chloe. Give a girl a light?" Max said as she parted her lips slightly before placing the joint between them.

Scrambling for her lighter, Chloe fished it out of her jacket pocket and deftly lit the joint poking out from Max's lips. _That lip gloss gives them a hella nice…ugh, stop it, Chloe! This girl is probably still fucking pissed. Play it cool, be totally cool._

"Want to come back to my house? It's raining and we never even had a chance to eat," Chloe offered, trying to sound ambivalent to the offer.

"Why the fuck not? If I don't like it, I can always write you for months only to have you never get back in touch with me," Max said sarcastically as she flashed Chloe a sly grin.

"At least you're still a smart-ass," Chloe said, returning the grin as she started her truck and pulled onto the street.

"It's why I'm here," Max nodded, giggling a little.


	2. Chapter 2

**So. My hiatus turned out to be a hiat-not-so-much, I guess.**

 ***shrugs* If you've got a brilliant idea, fucking go with the flow.**

 **Let me know what you think - like I said, I might do another two-parter in this AU.**

Chloe watched Max nervously from the corner of her eye as she drove down the street leading to her house, the brunette looking out the passenger window as she puffed away at her small joint. Chloe felt her heart sputter as she realized that Max was watching her through the faint reflection of the window's glass. Forcibly avoiding a knee-jerk reactionary loss of motor control while behind the wheel, Chloe decided to try and act casual. _Most. Awkward. Ride. Ever_ , Chloe thought as she nervously looked straight out the windshield before hearing a small snicker from the passenger side.

Realizing that she'd been caught regardless, Chloe ceased being discreet in her observation of the girl who had once been her best friend. Brazenly turning her head slightly, Chloe made it clear that she was looking at Max. Seeing the smirk on Max's reflection, Chloe didn't know what to expect when Max turned around in her seat so that she was facing forward. S _hitballs! She's going to say something! Wait…isn't that a good thing? But what if she says a bad thing?! 'Bad thing'? Ugh, woman the fuck up, Chloe!_

"Ashtray?" Max asked plainly, her clear voice startling Chloe as she held up the ember stub of a joint while blowing a smoke ring toward the windshield. _Dude, that is hella cool!_ Chloe thought as she reached underneath her side of the truck's bench seat with a free hand and pulled out an old red ashtray with "Oregon" stamped on one side in white lettering.

"Pot, huh? That's some good shit," Chloe said with a nervous smile, seeing another smirk emerge from Max. _I suck at this! How the fuck do I even talk to her? Speak words in mouth good? Rarghhhh!_

"Yes, pot is some pretty good shit. I'm assuming you get lit, too?" Max asked as she pulled another cigarette-sized joint out and held it out toward Chloe, "Where the fuck are my manners? Sorry, Chloe. Would you like one?"

"A whole joint?"

"Well yeah. I didn't offer a puff and it is bad etiquette to not do so. Hence, a full doob if you want it," Max said with an incredulous tone, "You _don't_ want it?"

"No. I mean yes. I mean…ugh, just set it next to me and I'll blaze when we get to my house," Chloe replied, shaking her head as the urge to pull her beanie all the way down to hide her face grew in its temptation.

"…I'm not going to bite or anything, Chloe," Max said as she slid back into her seat and resumed looking out the passenger window, "I'm not a goddamn vampire or anything. At least, that _you_ know of."

"Oh, look at you. So funny with your funniness and pretty dress and shit-" Chloe rambled before being cut off by Max.

"You think I look pretty?" Max spun around in her seat again as Chloe tried to act like she hadn't heard the question, let alone the surprise and pleasure in Max's tone. _Shit fuck ass balls fuck fuck goose!_

Seeing that she was not going to get an answer at that moment, Max smiled faintly to herself as she took the offered ashtray and finished snubbing the remains of her joint. Setting it on the floor, Max kicked the ashtray under her side of the seat as she stretched her arms out and popped her knuckles. _What the hell am I doing? I should have asked her to take me back to Blackwell. This is so stupidly awkward. Still, she's being…she's being kinda cute. And I_ know _she just called me pretty. She's more nervous than I am. Still a complete dork, Chlo._

"Did you really think I wouldn't notice you were watching me, Chloe?" Max asked, an affectation of humor in her voice, "A ninja you certainly are _not_."

"Maybe I wanted it to be obvious," Chloe countered, her nervous tone gradually becoming playful as she winked at the bemused Max.

"Then well played, Madame. More likely? You're full of shit," Max chided in return, giggling a bit before sighing, "Now, you were telling me I was-"

"Aaaand we're here!" Chloe cut Max off, _Thank fucking God_ running through Chloe's head as she pulled the truck along the curb in front of the Price residence, "Like what we've not done with the place?"

 _I'll get my answer, Chloe Price_ , Max thought before looking through the windshield at a familiar sight. Max couldn't help but smile as she looked out the window at the same house she remembered from her childhood. The paint may have been slightly more worn than the last time she was there, but to Max if felt nostalgic. _Time stands still here, like a picture._ Pulling out her Polaroid camera, Max took a photo of Chloe's house through the window. _I like how the rain on the glass plays with the rainfall still coming down_. _It's like we're frozen in time._

"Give me a sec, Max," Chloe said, getting the other girl's attention as she pulled off her jacket, "I'll come around. No reason for both of us to get hella soaked, especially when one of us is wearing a fucking dress."

"A _fucking_ dress? And here I thought I looked nice, maybe even 'pretty'? Such flattery will actually get you nowhere, Price," Max said with an eyebrow raised.

"Shaddup!" Chloe said, rolling her eyes as she quickly opened the driver's side door and ran out into the rain.

Slamming her door behind her, Chloe lifted her jacket over her head to try and temporarily minimize her own saturation before swinging Max's door open. _Okay. I really need to stop being awkward. Chloe, stop being awkward. Okay? Okay,_ Chloe thought as she smiled while Max slid out of the truck. Lifting the jacket over Max's head, Chloe felt the icy drops collide with her shirt as they sent shivers down her body. Taking the jacket from Chloe's hands, Max let the bluenette lead her in a sprint from the sidewalk to the Prices' front door.

"Holy balls, I'm freezing," Chloe managed to get out through chattering teeth, "Um, you can set the food in the kitchen if you want. D'you mind if I…oh, _shit_."

Max's teeth were chattering nearly as much as Chloe's, her dress not as saturated as Chloe's shirt but still wet enough that it was obvious she was freezing as well. Taking the food from Max's shaky hands, Chloe set the two warm paper bags on the table by the door. Grabbing Max's wrist, Chloe led the soaked brunette up the stairs and into her bedroom. _Don't think, Chloe. Just do_.

"Uh, wow," Max said as she closed the door behind herself and gawked at the transformation of what she remembered Chloe's room looking like combining with the sight before her, "Looks…looks like the inside of a bar met the inside of your brain, Chloe."

"I don't know how to take that," Chloe responded as she turned her attention from the search for dry clothes that were also clean to Max with a questioning look, "That a compliment, trash-talk…?"

"An astute observation. Seriously, Chloe, I kinda like it," Max said as she ran a hand along the walls, "We actually like some of the same bands still. The graffiti is cute."

"My room is 'cute'. That is totally _not_ what I was going for," Chloe let out a single laugh at the ludicrous idea of her room resembling anything that could be called cute, "If this is cute then you have a pretty twisted idea of cuteness, Max Caulfield." _Still, she said something about me was cute. Like, openly. Maybe this isn't a total loss. Maybe I could get my best friend back…_

"Jury's out on that one," Max replied, absently examining some photos Chloe had put up on the wall by her desk before both their phones lit up.

 **Rachel: Soooooo?**

 **Kate: Srsly, Rachel. Stop.**

 **Rachel: Hang on! Sooooo? ;)**

 **Max: No emoji! What u pulled revokes emoji privileges!**

 **Chloe: NO EMOJI-wait, never mind. Good call, Max**

 **Max: uh thx**

 **Rachel: :'(**

 **Rachel: Well? Having fun yet?**

 **Max: Chloe got us kicked out.**

 **Chloe: ! WTF MAX!?**

 **Max: well u DID**

 **Max: we're in her room nao**

 **Rachel: OOOOOOOOOOH! *grins***

 **Chloe: Ugh, Rachel. Lots of UGGHHHHHHHHH**

 **Rachel: Kate's giving me evil eye. TTYL! XD**

" _I_ got us kicked out?!" Chloe said with her voice raised, "Dude, that is fucked up! _You_ were being loud, too!"

"Not as much as you, never mind that you kept flipping the bartender off," Max said, folding her arms across her chest.

"He _shushed_ me! I don't get shushed!"

"Fucking _shush_ , Chloe!" Max yelled back, both girls begging to get into the argument.

"Do you want dry clothes or not?"

"So you're keeping the idea of me freezing to death open? Nice!"

"Ugh! I'm changing in the bathroom! Do whatever the fuck you want, Max _ine_!"

" _What the-_?! Urgh, Chloe Elizabeth Price!" Max shouted after Chloe slammed the door before heading into the bathroom.

Hearing the bathroom door slam as well, Max found herself left in a moment of solitary quiet. Growling at the closed door, Max punched the wall with her small fist and let out an angry "Ugh!" before turning her attention to the closet. _Fucking Chloe Price! Fucking Goddamn Chloe Elizabeth Price! I should…I should just steal some clothes, change, and make a run for the bus stop. It's got to have like a booth or something._ Max kicked her foot against a faded blue cabinet and looked up at it.

 _We…we painted this_ , Max said as her anger began to subside, _She kept this? It's been five years._ Max ran a hand along the worn surface of the old cabinet, looking at it in fascination as memories of painting the piece of furniture with Chloe surfaced. Remembering how she had smacked her paintbrush on Chloe's head, Max felt an alien sound escape her as she giggled. _The first time her hair was painted blue, apparently._ Max wanted to examine the contents of what was inside the drawers but was deftly blocked by a sneeze. Sniffling, Max looked down at her soaked dress and sighed. _Sorry, Rachel. This is not going how you probably hoped it would_.

Peeling off the wet clothes, Max felt her skin crawl as the air and her damp skin combined to send a chill up her spine. Opening the closet, Max pulled a small army's worth of tank-tops aside before finding a black and red flannel shirt. Looking at the item of clothing curiously, Max realized why it looked so familiar.

"Rachel? Of course it's Rachel's. Diabolical mastermind that she is. How could she not know a date between me and Chloe would go like this? It _is_ nice to see Chloe, though. I missed her so much," Max admitted to herself as she slipped the flannel on. Buttoning the shirt up, Max had found a pair of sleep shorts when Chloe came bursting through the door.

Whatever anger Chloe still had flitted away when she saw Max in the flannel shirt and shorts. _She's fucking beautiful_ , Chloe thought as she looked down at her blue jeans and white tank-top. _How does she look amazing in whatever I see her wear?_ Carrying both bags of Chinese food in one hand, Chloe walked over to Max and broke the awkward pause between them by giving Max a hug. Taking the brunette by surprise, Chloe felt Max hesitate a moment before returning the gesture with a hug of her own. _I'm so sorry, Max. I'm sorry that I never called or wrote or anything. God, I'm a fucking asshole. Say that, Chloe. Tell her everything. Right now._

"I…I was afraid you wouldn't find anything to wear," Chloe stammered out, looking at Max with her eyes opened wide, "Nice to see you presentable. I,um, I brought the food."

"I can see that, Chloe," Max teased as she went to her camera bag. Pulling out her old Polaroid camera, Max took a snapshot of the awkward-looking Chloe and smiled before tilting the camera up to take a selfie. "Here."

"Thanks, I guess," Chloe said with a sheepish face as she took the offered selfie Max had taken, "Okay. Can…can we just try all this again, Max? We were both hella blindsided by Rachel with this whole set-up and I really would like to spend some time with you. I know I fucked up, never writing back or anything. I was just…I was just, well, scared."

"Punk grrl Chloe Price, scared? The end is nigh," Max said in a feigned tone of surprise, "Yeah, I suppose we could give tonight another shot. I missed you, Che. I missed you a lot."

"You used my old nickname."

"I guess I did. That bad? I could always call you 'Epic Fail Girl', on account of how many times you've either screwed up or been caught sneaking glimpses at me-"

"'Che' is fine, Max," Chloe said, relieved at Max's lighter tone, "I'm an epic fail, huh? Wouldn't be the first time. You look hella cute in the flannel, by the way."

"Aww, thanks." Max winked at Chloe before opening up her paper bag and pulling out a carryout container and chopsticks, "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that Rachel would leave some of her clothes here-"

"Whoa there, pint-size. That shirt is _mine_. Rachel snags my gear all the goddamn time. Hella irritating when you're trying to find a shirt only to realize that it was snatched away by a long-haired shirt goblin."

Max nearly choked on her food as a laugh nearly escaped her. Eyes watering as she coughed and swallowed in succession, Max shot Chloe a stern gaze. Mouthing _Sorry_ , Chloe carefully took a bite of her own food for fear of retaliation. Eyes wandering as she chewed her food, Chloe looked down and noticed the smooth paleness of Max's bare legs. _Look_ up _, Chloe. Stop gawking at her. Stop. Stop it._

"Like what you see, Che?" Max asked, sliding across the bed to sit right next to Chloe with a sly upturn in one corner of her mouth.

"Hmm? What? Oh shit," Chloe said with gasp, spacing out in her thoughts about Max's legs. Thankful she had at least swallowed the food in her mouth, Chloe looked over and saw Max watching her with an indecipherable look on her face. _Is she mad?_ Chloe thought as she continued to eat her food, the two girls looking at each other between bites. After a few minutes of silence, Max surprised Chloe by stealing the last of the blue-haired girl's eggrolls.

"What the…? You jacked my last eggroll?" Chloe said as she jumped after the fleeing Max, the brunette bum-rushing Chloe's bedroom door and running down the stairs. "Get back here, you fucking brat!"

Chloe ran downstairs after Max, but stopped when she made it to the hallway. The downstairs area was dead silent. Chloe strained her ears to try and catch signs of where Max might be, but came up empty as she slowly made her way down the hall and into the living room. Peeking around the couch, Chloe came up to the old wine stain from when she and Max had tried to drink a bottle of Joyce's alcohol. Max had ended up spitting it out while accidentally spilling the bottle's contents onto the floor. Maybe it was the giggling from that moment or somewhere in the house Max was giggling, but Chloe's head snapped back up as she darted her eyes back and forth to try and find out where the giggling was coming from.

"Maaaax? Oh, Maaaax?" Chloe called out, an evil grin on her face as she moved from the living room to the sliding glass door. Seeing that the door was cracked open, Chloe thought it would be pretty stupid of Max to go outside while it was still raining. _It's a trap_! Chloe thought as she sniggered to herself. "Where are yewwwwww?"

Max was trying so hard not to laugh as she hid. Hearing Chloe come barreling down the stairs, Max tensed when the first floor of Chloe's house suddenly became silent. _No way has she seen me_ , Max thought as she hid behind the small counter separating the dining area and the kitchen, _No fucking way._ Pressing herself against the counter even more, Max barely heard the footfalls of booted feet as Chloe made her way down the hall at a cautious pace. Silently crawling around the counter so that she was now in the kitchen, Max sat against the counter again and listened as Chloe called after her. _Dog, she's like a dorky Jack_ from _The Shining. All work and no play makes Chloe a regular Chloe because she probably has no job._ Max clamped her hands to her mouth as she stifled another bout of laughter. Now was not the time to make herself laugh, Max knew, but this was just too much fun.

Hearing Chloe momentarily halt in her pursuit, Max peeked around the doorway separating the kitchen and hall to see Chloe kneeling by the old couch. Remembering the time she had tried to drink some of Joyce's wine, Max let out a single giggle and watched as Chloe's whole body shot up. _Crap!_ Max pinned herself against the wall next to the doorway, realizing as she looked around that she had trapped herself. The only way to escape Chloe would be to run back upstairs and lock Chloe out of her own room. _Release the kraken!_ Max sprang to her feet and stumbled for a moment, tripping on the linoleum floor as she ungainly came out into the hallway. Seeing Chloe's head twist in her direction, both girls grinned mischievously at one another before moving.

"Shit!" Max cried out as she began to scramble for the stairs.

"Gotcha bitch!" Chloe hollered after Max, running for the clumsy brunette.

Only a few feet behind Max, Chloe took the stairs two at a time, thinking that she was going to make it only to have the door slam inches from her face. Rattling the doorknob, Chloe looked at the door in a moment of surprise as she realized that Max had just locked her out of her own room.

"This is treason! This is an illegal occupation! I demand justice!" Chloe yelled as she pounded at her door, hearing Max laugh her ass off from the other side.

"I claim this room in the name of Caulfieldonia!" a cheerful voice cried out from the other side of the door, "The first order of business will be a reconstruction of the area to allow for a better quality of life!"

"That's some shitty bidness!" Chloe slammed the palm of her hand on the door a single time before resting her forehead against it, "Lemme _in_!"

"…Password?"

"Goddamnit, Max!"

"Ehhh! Wrong! Defense system activated!"

 _Fuck_! Chloe thought as she realized that Max wasn't going to just let her walk right back in. Chloe shook her head as she laughed, pulling her beanie off to run her fingers through her hair while she tried to strategize. _I can't just get in through the door. I'm obviously not going to break it down; that's taking things_ way _too far. Wait…is it still raining out pretty badly_? Quietly descending the stairs, Chloe looked out the peephole of the front door to find that the downpour had lightened up to a sprinkle. Yanking her beanie back in place, Chloe grabbed her usual leather jacket and bounded outside.

Running along the side of the house, Chloe came to the old latticework on the side of the house. Having used it several times to evade her parents while she would sneak out of the house, Chloe grinned as she began to ascend toward the roof. Trying not to make any noise, Chloe crept toward the window and peeked around the corner. _What is Max doing? Are those…those are our old comics. Is she…is she crying? Oh, dude. Maxaroni, don't cry._ Chloe pouted while she watched the brunette wipe at her eyes as Max sat on Chloe's bed with a piece of their childhood in her lap.

Deciding that sneaking was maybe not the most preferable thing at this point, Chloe kneeled at the window and rapped at the glass with her fingertips. Seeing Max's head pop up, Chloe couldn't help but grin when she saw the knowing smile on Max's face. Her eyes a little red from crying a moment ago, Max crawled up onto Chloe's desk and sat next to the window. Leaning her head against the glass, Max put her hand on the window and felt the slight pressure as Chloe mimicked her gesture.

"Let me in?" Chloe asked, her double meaning obvious to both of them.

"Can I…can I trust you?" Max asked in return, lifting her head off the window to look into Chloe's blue eyes.

"Forever."

Signaling for Chloe to scoot back, Max grunted a bit as she lifted the window up enough to let Chloe slide inside. Clearing out a path on the desk as she climbed off, Max stood waiting in the middle of Chloe's room as the blue-haired girl made her way inside. Closing the window behind her, Chloe locked it and turned around only to lose the air in her lungs. Max, her face inches from Chloe's, had wrapped her arms around Chloe's neck as she stood on tip-toes.

"Can I trust you? Can I believe in you, Che?" Max asked, her lips parting slightly with each word, her eyes searching and wanting.

"I'm never leaving you," Chloe said, wrapping her arms around Max's waist as she let Max into her after five years with a returned kiss and two reunited hearts.

 **Read, review, and as always...**

 **Stay hella, Cinnamon Rolls!**


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